Last surgery of the year...I pray!

This year has been a pretty challenging year for us as far as doctors, hospitals and medicine is concerned.  I am pretty sure we have met our deductible twice over.  We started off the year with Logan's tonsillectomy, and we finished out the year with Luke's hernia repair.  In between was everything else! I can say at this point that I am very grateful for medicine, the medical community and the great people who are willing to work with kiddos in this arena.  I can also say that I am quite tired of going to doctor visits, hospitals, surgical centers, and CVS! I am praying for a injury-free, surgical-free, and prescription drug-free new year!  I know that is asking a lot considering that I have two boys, so maybe I should just pray for a year without emergency room visits or surgery. 

This morning, we took Luke in for his hernia repair.  I have to say that I was much more calm than I thought I would be.  I think that taking Logan in earlier in the year for his tonsillectomy prepared me.  I am so impressed with the doctors and nurses that helped out with both surgeries. They truly understand what it means to a parent to watch your child rolled off to a room where they are going to poke him with needles, give him drugs to knock him out cold and cut him open with very sharp knives.  They had no less than 7 people in our room this morning to check, double check and triple check information, ask questions and offer information.  There was also a gentleman that came in about the time we got ready to roll him away.  He was very nice, soft spoken and was decked out in the scrubs and the surgical hat.  He came down and sat beside me and asked me a few questions about Luke.  He told me a few jokes and kept asking me if I was ok. He made small talk with us about where we were from and our other children.  I kept waiting for him to go to Luke and take his temp or do paperwork, but he never did.  I realized later that he may actually have been there for Lyndon and me.  I wonder if they saw us and just went ahead and called someone in from psych.  Just joking!  But, I do understand how they would worry about the parents.  It is a lot to take in, and Luke was there for what is considered a routine, outpatient surgery.  I hated to think about what some other parents were having to endure.  Maybe that is another reason I was fairly calm.  

Pre-surgery!  Happy and pain free!

The bear had to have arm bands too!

  I did not know if I should laugh or be really concerned that the elixir they gave Luke required this arm band! 

Starting to feel the happy juice!

Really starting to feel the happy juice!

Post-op...not feeling happy anymore! The doctor ended up finding another hernia just opposite the first sight.  I was really happy he caught it, but now it will be a little more recovery time.  He has a rough few days ahead of him, but we have movies, books, puzzles, games and his big brother for entertainment! 

Luke's top 20!

Happy Birthday to Luke!! Here are 20 facts about Luke!!

1) Luke is still called "Bubba" these days! 
2) Luke has upgraded in the toy department to Legos!  He also still loves him some puzzles!
3) He is still a huge fan of Scooby Doo.  He actually requested a Wii Scooby game for his birthday!
4) Luke has started Pre-school this year and likes it for the most part.  Getting dressed and getting in the car is the biggest challenge.
5) He is still the most squeezable and kissable child I know.  He will give kisses sometimes, but only on his terms. 
6) Luke is catching up to Logan in the height department...he still has Fred Flinstone feet!
7) He is now sleeping on the top bunk.
8) His best friend is his big brother, Logan, unless Logan takes something from him, turns the channel, gets to the computer first or talks to him in the car.
9) Luke is a master at Slug Bug.
10) Luke is my sweet-eater.  He has a new obsession with chocolate toast!
11) Some of Luke's favorite foods include, apples, frozen raspberries, strawberries, strawberry and banana smoothies, peanut butter (on anything), pancakes, sloppy joes, Schwans popcorn chicken and any kind of bread!
12) Luke insists on opening every door including the garage door, car doors and doors to any building we enter.  Getting from point A to point B can take forever sometimes! 
13) Luke does not like it when I sing.  He actually cries and tells me to stop!
14) He grunts in his sleep.
15) Luke still loves the kitty.  The kitty still does not love Luke.
16) I now believe that Luke will become a BMX biker. 
17) Luke still wants to spend all of his time at home. 
18) He LOVES "findin' pictures" (seek and find pictures from his Highlights magazine).
19) He still sneaks out of bed almost every night to tell us something "important."  It is usually and "I love you too."  We can usually find him in our bed about 4am.
20) His newest heart stopper is to flash those insane brown eyes at me and tell me that he is going to keep me forever!  Forever sounds good to me!

We got to go to Luke's preschool to celebrate with his friends!

Thanks to Miss Carol and Miss Michelle for letting us celebrate with the class!

Wishing my sweet boy a very happy birthday!  We love you endlessly!

School Begins!

While I have been dreading the fall because school is starting, I have to say that watching Logan's face light up everyday makes it totally worth it!  He has always liked school, but this is a new arena for him, and he is beside himself.  I realized quickly that as sad as I am about him being gone from 8 in the morning to almost 5 in the afternoon, this was definitely the right choice.  I am amazed at all of the stuff they do with them, and I truly believe that kindergarten teachers have a special place in heaven.  I can't imagine what it would be like to have fifteen 5-year-olds in one room most of the day.  I know Logan and how loud and energetic he is, so adding 14 more just like him would be overwhelming.  I attended an open house this past week and had a chance to chat with his teacher.  She told me he is VERY excited about everything they do and seems to be competing with a couple of other boys to be the first to answer, be it right of wrong.  I will make sure to give her gift certificates for massages or lots of coffee! 
Then there was Luke!  Luke is not as crazy about getting up and getting dressed for school, but once he is there, he seems to have a great time.  We have had a report this last week of a time-out for running, surprise! But, the teacher assured me that he and another boy just need to get used to the classroom rules.  He did seem genuinely upset about having been put in time out. "They hurt my feelings," were his words exactly.  And, he cried when I told him we needed to tell Daddy about it.  I am praying that he will get more and more used to his school as the weeks pass.  I want for him to be excited about school too!  Ok, enough talk; here are the pics!

Logan's first day to ride the school bus!  He thinks it is so cool...just wait until junior high!

Luke's first day of pre-k!

One of the funniest things about getting Logan to the school bus stop is this dog!  Maddi thinks it is her responsibility to walk Logan to and from the bus each day.  Once Logan picks up his bag and lunch box, she whines and waits by the door until I put on her leash.  Then, about 4 in the afternoon, she starts following me around and pushes her nose up against the back of my legs until I get her on her leash and walk to the bus stop.  It is amazing to watch her with the Logan at the bus stop.  She barks when he gets on and nearly drags me the doors when he is getting off.  She goes nuts when she sees him!  Once he is home, she is calm again.  She has always been protective of the boys, but I have never seen her like this before.  It is really sweet!

Luke was very excited to pick up some books from the library at school!

Logan has also started soccer with the same team as last year!  They have a bigger field to work with this time around and some really good, aggressive players on the other teams.  It may take some getting used to!

Logan is teaching his little brother the basics so Luke can play in the spring!

I put in this picture for a Charlie update!  She has made much progress with me and Lyndon.  She now sleeps on my head every night and allows Lyndon to pet her on occasion. She still HATES the dog and is not crazy about the boys, but she at least comes out from under the bed when they are around.  If it is not obvious from the picture, she is eating just fine!

Have a great weekend!

Summer wrap up!

Before school started for everyone this year, we took one last road trip to Myrtle Beach!  We got very lucky to have picked the weekend we did considering that Irene hit the coast the next weekend.  Here are some pics for you!

This was the early morning view from our hotel balcony.  I could stare at this all day!

The view from our room! 

Nana!

Papa!

So, picture this!  As you may know, there have been a couple of shark attacks along the East Coast this summer.  You may also be aware that I am beyond terrified of sharks. In particular, I am terrified of being out in open water unable to get away from sharks. As a side note, I will now tell you that I think people who scuba dive are crazy. Strapping weights to yourself with the intention of sinking deeper into shark-infested waters is just not natural.  Why would anyone put on all that gear, including a tank to help you breath under water and swim with sharks? God provided us with lungs, not gills.  Yes, there is some insanely beautiful things to see in the ocean.  There are some amazing types of fish and sea creatures.  But, I very content to look at pictures and see footage from Jacques Cousteau's expeditions.  Anyway, upon our arrival, we were told that they had four, FOUR shark sightings that day right off the beach where we were.  Needless to say, only my toes touched the water.  I tried not to freak the boys out, but they heard the word shark, and they were ok with staying in the shallow parts.  This is an improvement from last year when Luke wanted to ride a shark!  I realize my fears are kind of silly because I have never had an encounter with a shark nor had any drowning accidents.  I have my brother to thank for convincing me that I would be eaten by a shark in water or on sand in an effort to keep me from going on a family vacation when I was about 7 years old.  It worked, and I stayed at home with grandma...he went to Hawaii. 

    

The boys happily playing in the shallow parts! 

This would be Papa.  He is not afraid of sharks and is one of those crazy people who loves to scuba dive. 

After some time at the beach, we headed to the Boardwalk.  This place is pretty neat.  From the outside, the building is made to look like a tornado turned it upside down and threw it on top of another building.  Even the trees are hanging upside down!  Really fun to look at. 

This is the lobby which is also upside down.  Makes your head hurt after looking for awhile!

Inside that huge building is a giant playground including Laser Tag, interactive stuff for kids and a giant ropes course. 

Daddy had to help out Luke!

Logan threw some baseballs.  He ended up walking the batter, but so did a lot of the grown men!

A really fun giant piano!

 Giant bubbles!

This was a cute game.  They had to step on the aliens to rescue the astronaut!

Logan flying in space!

Astronaut Lacy!

Astronaut Cook! 

Not sure I would want to be on a spaceship manned by either of them!

Carlos and Charlie's after a difficult day of sitting by the beach and walking the boardwalk. Mom and I had to cool off with margaritas!

A little ice cream to wash down the drinks and food from lunch!

It is a good thing we were with the kids; otherwise, we would have looked really silly!

Our last weekend before school started, Lyndon had a work function about two hours away at a baseball game. The boys had a blast. They got to stand right behind the bench and talk to the players, and they got to run the bases after the game, every five-year-old boy's dream!  It didn't take long for Logan to start in on wanting to play baseball.

The boys met a friend while they watched this player warm up.  They thought it was pretty cool to be so close to the team!

This pic is hard to make out, but there is a player leaning against the wall. Logan (in the light blue shirt) was wearing him out with questions!  It was not long after this was taken that the player moved to the other end of the bench! 

And that wraps it up for the summer! We will see you soon for a school update!! Have a happy fall!